NEW YORK — Roy Rogers’ stuffed and mounted dog, Bullet, fetched $35,000 on the second day of an auction of the movie cowboy’s belongings in New York City.
An executive of Nebraska cable TV network RFD-TV said the company bought Bullet to accompany Roger’s horse Trigger, which the company snagged Wednesday for more than $266,000. RFD-TV chief financial officer Steve Campione said the network hopes to start a museum one day.
RFD-TV owner Patrick Gottsch said the Omaha, Neb.-based network will begin airing old Roy Rogers movies on Saturdays starting November 6. The movie cowboy’s son, Roy Jr., will introduce each film, as Trigger and Bullet stand in the background.
“The goal is to introduce Roy Rogers to a whole new generation of kids,” Gottsch said.
Trigger and Bullet were part of a Christie’s auction of items from the now-closed Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Museum in Branson, Mo.
On Thursday, more than 1,000 items hit the auction block, including the Rogers family dining set, which sold at $11,875, triple the presale estimate; Trigger’s flower-bedecked straw hat, which fetched $2,750, compared with the $500 to $1,000 estimate; and the hand-drawn music and lyrics to “Happy Trails,” which sold for $27,500, compared with the estimate of $500.
The preserved remains of Rogers’ wife’s horse, Buttermilk, also were auctioned Thursday. Buttermilk sold for $25,000 — less than a tenth of Trigger’s price. Christie’s has not released the name of Buttermilk’s new owner.
The Rogers auction included more than 1,000 items from the now-closed Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Museum in Branson, Mo.
At the end of the auction, the audience broke out spontaneously in a rendition of the Roy Rogers theme song “Happy Trails.”
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